Page 2 of Critical Witness

One corner of his lips lifted. “Call me Will. My team has been authorized by acting President Coulter to bring in the man responsible for the assassination attempt. His current target is you and the video footage you’re carrying that would implicate him.”

Hannah let out a shaky breath. “Why is this happening? Who is he?” She didn’t miss the fact thatWillhadn’t answered her question.

“We don’t know yet. But he seems convinced that your little video will tell us. Which is why he wants you dead.”

It was all too much. She shook her head, unable to accept what he was telling her. This was supposed to be her big break. This was her chance to escape the cycle of pinching pennies to buy enough groceries for the next week. “No, you’re mistaken. I talked to him. He was legit,” she insisted.

Will simply raised an eyebrow. and her irritation rose at the condescension she felt in the action. She stiffened her shoulders. “I don’t know what you’re trying to pull here, but I don’t have to turn over my video to some government tough guy just because you say so.”

Will tipped his head back and forth as though weighing her words. “That’s debatable, actually. There’s this thing called National Security. And until we have the shooter identified and in custody, we need that video to remain confidential. Honestly, I’m not sure they’ll let you sell it, even after we catch the guy, but that’s beyond my pay grade.”

Hannah felt her golden ticket slipping away. “Then go catch him. You said he’s right there, right?”

Will nodded slowly. “Yeah. He is. And my team is waiting to make a move on my go ahead. But what I need is for you to give me your video and promise you’ll stay right here until we get him. For right now, my team is only three guys, including me. Which means I can’t be in here babysitting you while we grab him.”

Hannah’s irritation rose at every comment. “I’m not a child, Rambo. I can take care of myself.”

His expression grew serious. “Ms. Byers, I don’t doubt that you are capable and strong in your own right. The fact that you kept your senses about you during the attack is frankly impressive for a civilian. But right now, there is a trained assassin with one goal in mind: Eliminate you and disappear.”

She swallowed as the fear momentarily stole her breath. He leaned in closer, and Hannah felt her heart flutter at the intensity of his words. A bit of the fear, but also… something else. This man wasn’t one to be trifled with, but he wasn’t cruel. She recognized cruelty when she saw it. No, she wasn’t afraid of him. The intensity in his steely eyes was drawing her in, and she was desperate to know more about him.

But she needed to sell this video.

He kept talking. “I understand that this is your opportunity to get out of that shabby apartment. But your life is at stake. I have one goal in mind also: I’m going to catch the man that fired on our president in a cowardly act of terrorism and bring him to justice. I’ve been trained specifically for situations like this, and I will do everything in my power to protect you.”

Her heart kicked up a notch at his promise of protection. She’d been protecting herself for a decade. Not from snipers though.

“I need you to trust me,” he said firmly.

Hannah hated to admit it, but from the sound of it, she didn’t have another option.

CHAPTERTWO

Will studiedMelanie’s expression carefully as she reacted to his words. He saw the moment her denial turned to resignation. He couldn’t fault her for pushing back. In fact, it said a lot about her character. She wasn’t some beaten-down, helpless waif, despite the crappy apartment. She had moxie, that was for sure.

His pulse had raced at the fire flashing in her eyes when he laid out her options—or lack thereof. He wanted to protect her.

But she clearly didn’t want to be protected.

That didn’t mean she wasn’t way out of her league here. He couldn’t forget that Melanie Byers was just an innocent bystander, caught in the crossfire of a conflict that was far bigger than her.

Kind of like Amira, making the best of a terrible situation.

He shook his head to clear the memories, glancing around the busy coffee shop. Melanie wasn’t Amira.

And this certainly wasn’t Kabul.

The updates from his team had been coming in through his earpiece during his entire conversation with the witness. When Stephen had spotted the sniper on the satellite from his post in Virginia, Will had breathed a sigh of relief. They could prevent her from coming out of the restaurant until they had him apprehended.

“We’re in position,” Pierce said in a low tone.

“I’m going to go back outside,” Will said to Melanie. “Do not move until we come back for you. Do you understand?”

He needed her to acknowledge her orders. He stared at her until she nodded, her wide eyes blinking once. She was stunning, with delicate features and skin so smooth he thought it might break if he touched it, like his sister’s porcelain doll.

The poor woman was in so far over her head, she’d be lucky to find the surface again. He couldn’t stop comparing the woman in front of him to the photos he’d seen of her when she was younger. What had changed? How had she ended up here, selling the video of an assassination?

But this was no time for curiosities. There was no time to be distracted by this undeniable attraction.

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